Posts Tagged ‘HTC’

If HTC was hoping to keep at least some of the One M9′s details a secret, it’s going to be sorely disappointed. Well-known tipster @Upleaks has posted three promo videos that reveal… well, just about everything. They confirm that the M9 will have a much higher-resolution 20-megapixel camera at the back, as well as an UltraPixel (likely 4MP) front cam for your low-light selfies. You’ll also get Dolby surround sound from the One’s signature BoomSound speakers. And that’s just the hardware — there’s plenty on the software side, too.

The updated version of Sense shown in the leak isn’t as dramatic a shift as you might have seen in the past, but there are definitely some noteworthy features. There’s support for customizable themes, a widget that shows apps based on location (think context-aware launchers like Aviate), a new photo editor with effects like double exposure, and the ability to share media through three-finger swipes. There are still a few elements left to the rumor mill, like availability and the exact choice of processor (likely a Snapdragon 810), but it’s safe to say that HTC’s March 1st event will largely be telling you things you already know.

HTC is updating its flagship HTC One smartphone by giving it a larger screen, better software and a camera that’s easier to use.

The original HTC One received good reviews and was named the best smartphone of 2013 at the wireless industry’s premier trade show in Barcelona, Spain, last month. But HTC has failed to translate that glowing praise into sales. According to Gartner, HTC had less than 5% of the worldwide smartphone market in 2013.

HTC executives acknowledge that the company made several operational mistakes in releasing last year’s phone, including the fact that customers of the leading US wireless carrier, Verizon Wireless, weren’t able to buy it until months after its launch. This time, the phone will be available right away through all the major carriers. Online orders start Tuesday, while retail stores will get them on April 10. It will cost about $200 to $250 with a two-year service contract, or about $650 without a contract.

HTC also plans aggressive marketing, including the heavy use of cable and broadcast television ads. The goal is to reach tech-savvy consumers and trend-setters who are likely to recommend the phone to friends. The company didn’t specify how much it plans to spend, but executives said it won’t try to match Samsung dollar for dollar.

Samsung Electronics Co. currently dominates the global smartphone market. Last year, the Korean company had a 31% market share compared with Apple Inc.’s 16%. Samsung, in particular, is notorious for its heavy marketing. The company spent nearly 4.6 trillion won ($4.3 billion) in advertising in the 12 months through September, about four times the $1.1 billion Apple spent in the same period, the latest for which figures were available.

Although Samsung also makes TVs, refrigerators and other products, analysts believe much of the marketing is for newer products such as phones.

To break through, HTC plans to emphasise the One’s all-metal design. Samsung’s phones typically have a plastic back panel, while Apple’s iPhones use glass. HTC’s design chief, Scott Croyle, said about 90% of the One’s back and sides will be made of metal, but the phone’s manufactured in a way that makes it tough to tell where the metal ends and where the composite strips begin. Croyle calls it “zero-gap construction.”

The new phone will have a screen measuring 5 inches diagonally, up from 4.7 inches in last year’s model. It will help software improvements designed to anticipate your needs, such as offering lunch recommendations when it’s time for lunch. That will come through HTC’s hub for personalised content, known as BlinkFeed. BlinkFeed itself will be more colorful and will continue to present news, social media updates and other items of interest.

HTC continues its philosophy of steering people away from the megapixel count in cameras, saying that more isn’t necessarily better. Like the original model, the new HTC One has a 4 megapixel rear camera, which is low for high-end smartphones. Instead, HTC focuses on making the individual pixel sensors larger, so that they can capture more light and offer better shots in low-light settings. The front camera, for selfies, is improved, though – at 5 megapixels, compared with 2.1 megapixels before.

The new phone also makes it easier to use the camera’s Zoe assistant, which takes several shots over a few seconds and lets you pick the best ones. It also lets you save frequently used combinations of manual settings, so that you don’t miss the shot trying to set it each time.

HTC wants phone owners to know why it takes so long for the latest version of Android to arrive, so it has released a webpage and complimentary infographic to detail the exhausting process.

It’s not too far-fetched to say the No. 1 complaint about Android is the speed at which the latest software update rolls out. Or doesn’t roll out. News will break about a new Android update, but it won’t actually release for existing Android devices until months later. And for some, it never arrives at all.

Even new smartphones and tablets sometimes launch with an old version of Android. Just look at the Moto G. It launched in some markets running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, even though Android 4.4 KiKit had unveiled a month earlier. HTC claims however to roll out updates as fast as possible. In fact, the manufacturer has never taken longer than a year to issue an update (unlike rival manufacturers LG and Motorola and carrier AT&T).

That said, the HTC Evo 3D didn’t get an update from Android 2.3 to Android 4.0 for roughly 10 months. That’s an unusual case though, especially considering HTC’s update average is 4.7 months, according to Ars Technica. Still, why does it take so long for HTC and other carriers to issue Android updates? Well, HTC blames it on the “several stages” to adaptation.

HTC wants to be transparent about these stages, so it has published an infographic – called The Anatomy of an Android OS Update – to show the “steps of preparation” and progress (by both device and carrier). There are five stages altogether, starting with “evaluation,” then “development,” “integration,” “certification,” and finally, “push to consumer.”

HTC’s infographic highlights the HTC One and its OS version for all the major US carriers, and it lists other HTC devices like the the HTC One Max, etc. Check out infographic for yourself, and let us know in the comments below what you think about the speed at which Android software updates roll out.